Their patience finally gave out. For long, the girl students of the Vidyalankar College of Engineering and Diploma in Wadala bore in silence the sexual harassment on their way back home every day. When they decided to take matters into their hands, one proposal got the most number of ayes: the demand for regular bus services.
They have now submitted a petition to the BEST authorities to increase the frequency of buses to and from their college. As of now, this route sees just one bus heading towards the college. Girls have no choice but to walk back home, and face jeers and calls from boys in the neighbourhood.
"Our classes get over after 7pm. The college is in a slum area and there are a lot of undesirable characters lurking around. When we walk back home, we have been harassed by gangs of rowdy boys. A bus would help us feel safe and secure," reasoned Preshita Narkar, a first-year IT student.
Another student, Tanvi Pujari, agreed. "We have to wait for nearly half-an-hour every day for the bus. We are engineering and vocational courses' students and have busy schedules. Also, while waiting for the bus or when walking, we are scared because our college is in a lonely area and several times, boys tease us."
When things came to a head, the students approached the Maharashtra Navnirman Vidyarthi Sena students' wing. Its college president, Pooja Walavalkar, took up the issue, made the 15 students sign a petition for increasing the frequency of bus no 110 and to start more services on this route and submitted it at the Worli bus depot.
Walawalkar said the authorities had turned a deaf ear to their pleas for too long. "Hopefully this time, we'll get a positive response from BEST authorities."
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